Sound making device



Sept? 12, 1 I J. s. MAGIERA 3,340,846

I SOUND MAKING DEVICE Fi led May Sl, 1966 FIG.3 FIG.5'

INVENTOR. JOSEPH S. MAGIERA ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,340,846 SOUND MAKING DEVICE Joseph S. Magiera, 466 S. Falcon St., South Bend, Ind. 46619 Filed May 31, 1966, Ser. N0- 553,919 6 Claims. (Cl. 11667) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A sound making device adapted to be mounted in the instep of a shoe, in which a hollow, bulbous body having a neck with a sound making element therein is secured in the instep by a projection extending outwardly from the neck for penetrating the heel portion of the shoe. The bulbous body is compressed as the wearer steps downwardly with the shoe, causing expulsion of the air which operates the sound making element.

Various attempts have been made in the past to attach a device to one or both of the shoes for producing various sounds as the wearer walks or runs, but these prior devices have been unsatisfactory or objectionable for a variety of reasons, including difliculty in securing the device to the shoes, interference with walking or running, and bulkiness and unsightly appearance. Some of the prior devices have been secured to the shoes by straps and buckles which, in effect bind the feet, or which are built into the shoe, and hence cannot be removed when the sound effect is not desired or required. It is therefore one of the principal objects of the present invention to provide a sound device of the aforesaid type which can easily be attached to the shoe, and which when attached is virtually invisible and has little or no effect on the normal walking or running movements of the wearer.

Another object of the invention is to provide a sound making device adapted to be attached to the instep of the shoe and to remain in operative position until intentionally removed, without the use of straps or other fixtures projecting beyond the edge of the sole of the shoe and without extending downwardly, forwardly or rearwardly sufliciently to prevent the weight of the wearers body from being distributed normally on the heel and forward portion of the sole of the shoe.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a simple sound making device for attachment to shoes, which can easily be mounted on and removed from the shoe and is so constructed and positioned that little wear occurs while it is being used on the shoe, and which, while positioned along the sole of the shoe, is so protected that dirt, water and other foreign material cannot readily reach the operating parts of the device.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description and accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a shoe and the present sound making device, showing the device mounted in the instep of the shoe;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged top plan view of the present sound making device;

FIGURE 3 is a side elevational view of the device shown in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a vertical cross sectional view of the present device, the section being taken on line 44 of FIGURE 2; and

FIGURE 5 is an elevational view of the device, with a portion broken away to more clearly show the construction of the present device.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, numeral designates a shoe, and 12 the present device mounted 3,340,846 Patented Sept. 12, 1967 thereof. The upper portion 18 of the body and neck is preferably flat, so that a relatively wide area will be placed on or near the surface of the sole at the instep, as illustrated in FIGURE 1. The body 14 is constructed of rubber or resilient and flexible plastic material, and is adapted, after being compressed, to return immediately to its original substantially spherical shape when the compressing pressure has been released. The neck may be made integrally with the body and preferably of the same material. The neck contains an opening 20 in which is mounted a sound making element 22, the one shown being designed for making a whistling sound as the body is compressed and released. The element consists of an outer disc portion 24 with a center hole 26, and an inner disc portion 28 with a center hole 30. The inner disc portion is held in place by a cylindrical flange 32 seated in a cylindrical flange 34 attached to and supporting outer disc portion 24. The disc portion 24 is provided with an annular head 36 for gripping the internal surface of the neck or for seating in a depression made therein for receiving the bead.

Various other types of sound making elements may be used; for example, an element for making a squawking or squeaking sound may be inserted in passage 20. These alternative elements would inherently be of a different but well known construction from that shown at 22 for making a whistling sound, and these various elements could be interchangeable in the same device.

One of the principal features of the present invention is the means by which the device is secured to the shoe. The means consists of a pair of pins 40 and 42 having horizontal portions 40a and 42a, respectively, with sharp points 40b and 42b, and with vertical portions 40c and 420, respectively. The vertical portions 40c and 420 extend down through vertical holes in neck 16 and hold the horizontal portions 40a and 42a in a relatively rigid position. The two vertical portions are preferably connected to one another at their lower ends by cross portion 43 formed integrally with the pins. The horizontally projecting portions of the pins are adapted to extend into the heel of the shoe or between the heel and the adjacent sole portion, to thereby retain the device rigidly in place in the instep of the shoe.

In use, the present device is mounted in the instep of the shoe by pressing pins 40a and 42a into the heel between the layers thereof or between the heel and the adjoining sole and with the upper surface 18 preferably in face-to-face contact with or in close proximity to the sole at the instep. When the device has been mounted in the instep in the foregoing manner, the lower portion of the bulbous body projects downwardly below the lower surface of the heel and sole, so that as the wearer walks or runs, body 14 is compressed, thereby expelling air from the chamber 18a in the body. As the air is expelled from the chamber, it passes through openings 30 and 26, thereby causing a whistling sound. Since the material is resilient as well as flexible, the body returns to its normal substantially spherical shape when the pressure on body 14 is relieved. Upon expanding as the pressure is relieved, the air is drawn inwardly through passage 20, passing through holes 26 and 30, causing a further whistling sound. Since the outlet and inlet of element 22 face the heel in relatively close proximity thereto, the holes 26 and 30 are protected from dirt, water and other foreign materials by the heel, so that the device is unlikely to become inoperative or defective from foreign materials. Further, since the body and neck are seated in the instep, which slopes forwardly as indicated at numeral 44, walking and running tend to continually urge the device to the rear, seating and holding the pins firmly in position in the heel, thereby minimizing unintentional dislodging of the device from the shoe.

While only one embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail herein, various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. A sound making device adapted to be mounted in the instep of a shoe having a sole and heel, comprising a bulbous body of flexible, resilient material with an air chamber therein, a neck extending horizontally therefrom in upwardly offset relation to the center thereof to permit said neck to lie in close proximity to the sole of the shoe, said neck having a passage therethrough communicating with said chamber, a sound making element in said passage, and a means projecting outwardly from the neck for penetrating the heel portion of the shoe adjacent the instep thereof for securing said device in the shoe instep.

2. A sound making device as set forth in claim 1, in which said means for securing the device to a shoe con- 4. sists of a pair of pins projecting outwardly from said neck near the upper surface thereof for engagement with the heel of the shoe.

3. A sound making device as set forth in claim 2, in which the upper surface of the neck is flat for seating on the sole of the shoe in the instep.

4. A sound making device as set forth in claim 2, in which said pins are provided with a vertical portion extending downwardly through the neck on opposite sides of the passage therein.

5. A sound making device as set forth in claim 1, in which the sound making element seated in said passage includes a means for producing a whistling sound.

6. A sound making device as set forth in claim 4, in which the sound making element seated in said passage includes a means for producing a whistling sound.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 621,892 3/1899 Azzimonti 11667 706,878 8/1902 Atkinson 116139 2,304,235 12/1942 Boots 1161 2,413,545 12/1946 Cordi 36-83 2,721,420 10/1955 Chatten 46--175 2,912,791 11/1959 Cohen 46175 LOUIS J. CAPOZI, Primary Examiner. 

1. A SOUND MAKING DEVICE ADAPTED TO BE MOUNTED IN THE INSTEP OF A SHOE HAVING A SOLE AND HEEL, COMPRISING A BULBOUS BODY OF FLEXIBLE, RESILIENT MATERIAL WITH AN AIR CHAMBER THEREIN, A NECK EXTENDING HORIZONTALLY THEREFROM IN UPWARDLY OFFSET RELATION TO THE CENTER THEREOF TO PERMIT SAID NECK TO LIE IN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THE SOLE OF THE SHOE, SAID NECK HAVING A PASSAGE THERETHROUGH COMMUNICATING WITH SAID CHAMBER, A SOUND MAKING ELEMENT IN SAID PASSAGE, AND A MEANS PROJECTING OUTWARDLY FROM THE NECK FOR PENETRATING THE HEEL PORTION OF THE SHOE ADJACENT THE INSTEP THEREOF FOR SECURING SAID DEVICE IN THE SHOE INSTEP. 